Chapter 232 (1): Royal Family’s Internal Strife

February first.

Garden Road Park, Western District.

Wayne sat on a park bench with a newspaper in his hands, dressed entirely in black—suit, jacket, and a fedora. Standing beside him was Mona, who carried a briefcase with her.

The Princess’s knight had arranged a meeting at the Garden Road Park, specifying the bench and newspaper to signify who he was. It was a bit childish, but because of the generous upfront payment and the client’s status, he complied with the requirements.

Wayne had called Auston and asked if he could come to the meeting. Since he was the Lando heir, Auston always emphasized that he was to pledge loyalty to the Queen, and that the Prince and Princess had to wait for their turn. It would be fine for Wayne to chat with them, but he had to keep it brief so that the Queen wouldn’t get the wrong idea.

The appropriate distance had to be maintained.

Wayne understood, which was why he had called Auston. If Auston said no, he would return the payment and refuse to meet the Princess’s knight.

Auston said yes, telling Wayne to test the knight and figure out the purpose of the meeting. He also warned Trash Jr. to keep his damn mouth shut and not flirt with the Princess. He could overlook girls like Kristen and Vera, but the Princess was absolutely off limits.

Got it. Princess Elizabeth must be Veronica’s sister!

Wayne heard what he wanted to hear and imagined Auston getting a call from his ex-girlfriend on a dark and stormy night. Rushing to her villa, Auston saw Sophelia the Queen wearing nothing but a pair of white gloves. She complained to her ex-boyfriend about her dreary marriage and her husband’s lack of romantic sensibility.

Ten months later, Princess Elizabeth was born.

“What did I say? Those two definitely have something going on. I’ll tell Master when I return and make him fly tonight.”

Wayne confidently told Mona about the gossip between Auston and the Queen with undisguised envy. Getting worked up, he slapped her thigh hard.

Mona was speechless. She refrained from making a comment since it was Wayne. Instead, she praised her boss’s vivid imagination and said that it would be a shame for him not to write a novel about it.

“Even if I do, I can’t publish it. All the important figures involved will get the book banned.”

Wayne lamented the dark reality of society where truth couldn’t be told and condemned Auston’s double standards. He was sleeping with the Queen, but forbade Wayne from sleeping with the Princess.

It was said that fortune should be kept in the family, yet Auston treated his son like an outsider. What a failure of a father he was.

Nevertheless, Wayne was only venting and finding an excuse to make Auston fly through a window. He didn’t actually want anything to happen between him and the Princess, even if she was likely Veronica’s half-sister.

The reason was simple: the name Elizabeth Windsor reminded him of a certain monarch in his world[1]. Although they weren’t the same person, the connection felt discomfiting to him, and Little Wayne shared the sentiment.

Wayne had arrived five minutes early. Twenty minutes later, a woman in a black coat carrying a briefcase sat down beside him on the bench. She had short, neat blonde hair and a tall, slim figure. There was an imposing dignity to her facial features that seemed inherent to her, and her demeanor was cold and aloof to the point of indifference.

Perhaps it was because his master had short blonde hair, Wayne took an instant liking to this woman’s dignified and handsome image. He showed her the newspaper. “I’m Wayne. Are you my client?”

“No, I’m meeting you on behalf of my client.” The woman extended her hand, clad in a black leather glove. “Greetings, Sir Wayne. I’m Juno Jones. You may call me Knight Jones.”

“Of course,

Miss Juno

.”

Wayne shook her hand politely. Since she was around his age, he guessed that she came from a military background and also served as the Princess’s secretary or attendant in addition to her knight. Back where he came from, such a person would normally be known as a dowry maid.

Tsk, she’s quite good-looking. She has a nice figure, too.

The Princess had a fiancé, according to Auston. What a lucky bastard[2].

Perhaps Wayne was staring too blatantly. Juno frowned slightly and said with displeasure, “Sir Wayne, I looked into you before coming, and according to reliable intelligence, you’re not Mr. Lando’s illegitimate son. You have no blood relation.”

“So?”

“Please allow me to question that intelligence.”

“Permission granted.”

Wayne nodded. Rumors were like spilled milk. No amount of crying would unspill it, and he was tired of explaining himself. It was all Auston’s fault for looking so much like him. Even Veronica had been joking that she was adopted.

“Sir Wayne...”

“Call me Wayne. Let’s keep it simple. I’ll call you Juno, too. Here’s to a pleasant collaboration.” Wayne wasn’t familiar with Juno and had no interest in pursuing her. He said bluntly, “You claimed to be Princess Elizabeth’s knight. Can you prove it? No offense. It’s not that I don’t trust you, but I need confirmation for something this serious.”

“As it should be.” Juno opened her briefcase and took out a pair of black binoculars, pointing toward a six-story luxury hotel on the west side of the park. “Top floor, the window in the center.”

What, do you have a sniper there?

Instead of taking the binoculars, Wayne looked at the hotel’s top floor with his super vision. The surroundings rapidly receded as he focused on the centermost window, where he saw a blonde woman holding binoculars.

She lowered the binoculars and waved at him with a slight smile. She had her long blonde hair put up and wore a formal outfit. Her features bore some resemblance to Queen Sophelia, youthful and vibrant yet mysterious and noble. She was unmistakably Princess Elizabeth.

The Princess nodded before closing the window.

Wayne withdrew his gaze with a frown. The Princess had nodded thrice before closing the window. He seemed to have seen that speedrunning strategy somewhere[3].

“Sir Wayne?”

“Just Wayne. I received an order of chivalry, so both of us are knights. There’s no need for the formality,” Wayne said casually. “Once the Princess becomes Queen, you’ll be at least a Dame, and since you’ll be her confidant, I’ll be counting on you to put in a good word for me.”

Juno’s expression hardened. She snapped, “Sir Wayne, you’re not an ordinary person but the heir of a Tulip Family. Please don’t make improper remarks about succession.”

“It’s fine. I’ve said similar things to the Prince. It’s only pleasantries. The Princess won’t take it seriously.”

𝒇𝒓𝒆𝒆𝙬𝒆𝒃𝓷𝒐𝓿𝙚𝙡.𝒄𝓸𝒎

Juno took a deep breath. To match Wayne’s energy, she softened her expression and smoothly put on a faint smile, typical of a diplomat. “Wayne, I’ve proven my identity. Now we should discuss the commission.”

“Fine, but let me be clear upfront. The person you represent is extraordinary, so I may not take on the task.” Wayne gave Mona a pointed look, telling her to learn from how Juno had controlled her expression.

“Of course.” Juno got right to the point. “According to reliable intelligence from the Ministry of Magic, you’ve clashed with demons twice, once on Dragonheart Island and once in Londan. In the latter instance, you managed to go undercover and provide the Church of Heavenly Father with a good deal of information.”

“That did happen, but I’m not close with the Church of Heavenly Father,” Wayne clarified his stance. “I’ve always been loyal to the Minister of Magic. I only provide the information so that the church will go after the demons, thereby weakening the church’s power in Windsor.”

Mona nodded along. This was part of being undercover.

Juno smiled and continued, “On January fifth, the Dawn Detective Agency across from Wayne’s Detective Agency was attacked by demons. Mr. Lando reported to the Ministry of Magic on the descent of demons from hell. Afterward, demons attacked multiple ministry bases, causing massive damage...”

“The last demon appearance was on January fourteenth, when they were defeated at Lando Estate.”

“There’s still one demon lurking in Londan. I’ve received reliable information on a number of suspects. I’m hoping that your detective agency will be willing to investigate them.”

Juno opened her briefcase and took out a thick envelope, waiting for Wayne’s response.

“You’re the Princess’s knight, and the Princess is part of the royal family. After finding leads, you didn’t notify the Ministry of Magic directly but came to me instead, a member of the Ministry of Magic and the heir of a Tulip Family...”

Wayne sorted out the situation and shook his head. “It’s a little complicated. Let me ask one thing: does Her Majesty know?”

“She may or may not know.”

What, is she Schrödinger's Queen now? Does she have an affair with Planck, too?

Wayne rolled his eyes. “My position dictates that I can and must only be loyal to Her Majesty. I appreciate the Princess’s recognition, but allow me to turn down the commission. You should seek someone else to take on the task.”

“Mr. Wayne, setting aside the many hats you and I wear, you are a detective, and I am a nosy outsider. There’s nothing more to that.”

“Easy enough to say!” Wayne shook his head. “What you and I think don’t matter. The Queen is the master of the nation, and it’s what she thinks that matters. If there’s nothing else, I’ll be taking my leave.”

He patted Mona’s behind and strolled over to a tree. The crooked tree looked so distinctive. It was worth a careful study.

1. Queen Elizabeth II’s surname was Windsor. Her descendants adopt Mountbatten-Windsor as their surname. ☜

2. In the past, there was a marriage custom in China for maids to follow a bride to her new family as dowry. Their primary purpose was to assist the mistress, but they were also expected to sleep with the master of the family when the mistress could not. It was considered preferable to losing favor to another wife or concubine. ☜

3. I cannot find a specific speedrunning strategy like this, and it’s possible that the author isn’t talking about speedrunning a game literally, but speedrunning a relationship/fling. ☜